Many homeowners have never had a professional comforter cleaning by a dry cleaner. It's hard to say exactly why, but my guess is that homeowners rarely think about the need to clean their comforters, despite the fact they are probably the most used linen in the house. But just like anything else in your home, bed linens need cleaning too. They collect dust, dead skin, indoor pollutants, pet dander — the list goes on. It's not just your daily comforters that need cleaning, too. Guest linens sitting in your storage space or in a closed up guest room collect dust, odor and pollutants as well. Dirty comforters don't make a good first impression on your guests.

Comforter cleaning can quickly freshen your bed linens whether you use them daily, for guests or are getting ready to change from fall and winter to spring and summer bedding. Here are a few things to know about comforter cleaning.

Not every dry cleaner will handle comforters. They fear the liability of replacing the comforter if something goes wrong because most of us snip off the care tags. Take your comforters to dry cleaners with a proven record of comforter cleaning and who offer it among their regular services.

Expect the cleaning to take three to four days. Comforter cleaning often requires air drying to avoid shrinking the comforter, which is why it takes longer to clean them. If you need a comforter sooner, call ahead to discuss your needs.

Let your dry cleaner know about any tears, spots or stains, such as cat urine, so the cleaner can give special attention to the problem area.

When it comes to spring cleaning, I may not wash every window and dust every nook or cranny, but you can be sure I schedule a thorough round of comforter cleaning for the bed linens.